Avalanche Week 22 Preview: Tue vs Canucks, Thu vs Panthers, Sun @ Stars
- Image by Getty Images via Daylife
The Vancouver Canucks started the season as cold as a Northern Saskatchewanian ice floe.
Colorado took off out of the gates… well… like an Avalanche down a Rocky Mountain Valley.
Then the ‘Nucks got red hot and the Avs cooled to a respectable simmer. Now, with 17 games left in the regular season and the two clubs separated by 2 points, Vancouver will visit Pepsi Center determined to lock up the season series and stretch their division lead. This game will go a long way towards determining whether or not the young Avalanche are playoff-ready.
The Canucks are near the end of a remarkable (and remarkably successful) 14-game road swing that spanned the Vancouver Olympics. Vancouver has managed to squeeze every drop out of their team through this trip, and I think they may finally crash tomorrow at Phoenix.
But despite the long road the Canucks have travelled to get here, Vancouver is still going to put up a helluva fight versus Colorado.  These two teams rolled over Calgary to make the Northwest Division a two-horse race, and this game will be played in a vacuum as a result. The Avalanche trounced Vancouver in the second game of the season 3-0 before getting embarrassed with 0-3, 2-8 & 2-5 losses to the Canucks over three short weeks.
The Canucks will score, as they have quietly moved into a tie for 4th highest goal total in the NHL. Colorado has the speed and skill to skate with Vancouver any day, but will need to be efficient with their scoring chances to stay ahead. My gut tells me that Milan Hejduk will need to generate some offense early to get his young team believing hard in the win.
The Canucks game is the first in a week of marquee matchups for the Avalanche.
Tuesday’s game versus Vancouver is followed by the Florida Panthers’ first visit to Craig Anderson’s new digs since they let him dip to Colorado in the offseason.
Then on Sunday the Avalanche will trek to Dallas for a pitched battle with a desperate Stars squad eager to break into the playoff field. (They’re currently 4 points out.) Colorado typically plays extremely well against Dallas, but did lose 2-3 on their last trip to Texas. This is a nationally televised Sunday afternoon game, and the Marc Crawford-coached Stars will definitely be playing up to the big audience & high stakes.
Tue, Mar 9th vs Vancouver Canucks (7:00 MST)
PREDICTION:Â AVALANCHE 4, Canucks 3 (SO)
Thu, Mar 11th vs Florida Panthers (7:00 MST)
PREDICTION:Â AVALANCHE 5, Panthers 2
Sun, Mar 14th @ Dallas Stars (1:00 MST)
PREDICTION:Â Avalanche 2, STARS 3
WEEK 19 PREDICTION: Â 2-1
**Bonus Coverage**
Stewart’s Star shines brightly in first full season
Avalanche right wing Chris Stewart was named the NHL’s First Star for his stellar performance over four games last week. Stewie bagged four assists and five goals, three of which came in his first career hat trick Saturday against the Blues. Stewart is technically a sophmore, but only played a handful of games last season.
Chris is quickly becoming a fan favorite in Colorado, and his balanced combination of quickness and raw power has made him the Avs’ leading goal scorer on the season. Stewart has 51 points in 60 games this year, and is emblematic of Colorado’s tough, aggressive approach on both sides of the puck.
